Cup

ABSTRACT

There is provided a cup ( 1 ) adapted to hold a drink, the cup having, at its opening, a compartment ( 4 ) holding an auxiliary drink, made up, for example, of milk, which, due to the special shape of the wall ( 5 ) which delimits the compartment, is intended to flow in a very gradual manner into the central compartment of the cup, which holds the main drink ( 8 ), made up, for example, of coffee. In this manner, very gradually the user mixes the milk with coffee, as desired by many users and not in a single solution as it currently occurs pouring a given amount of milk directly into the coffee.

The present finding regards a cup adapted, in particular, to be used forconsuming drinks to be mixed; for example, the cup could be used fortaking a coffee/milk, tea/mil or coffee/hard liquors mixtures.

It is known that the term cup is used to indicate a small container,generally made of ceramics or porcelain or even made of metal or plasticmaterial, held in which is a drink, which is then sipped by the userafter being raised to his lips tilting it slightly to facilitate itsflowing into his oral cavity. Very often, cups are provided with a smallhandle for facilitating the user in his action of tilting the same.

In most cases, these cups are used for holding drinks such as coffee andtea which, in turn, are often mixed with other substances such as milk,milk cream and the like. At times, coffee is also mixed with hardliquors such as grappa.

Currently, these “additional” substances are simply poured into theliquid mass of the drink intended to be drunk. Generally, the latter hasquite a high temperature, while the “additional” substance has a tepidtemperature if not even relatively low temperature. It is clear that,once the mixing is performed, there will be a given drop of globaltemperature of the liquid mass. However, at times the user would prefernot mixing the two drinks immediately and completely, but only“covering” the main drink with a layer of additional substance; inpractice, the user would like to pour the additional drink into the maindrink little by little, but that is a quite complicated task.

An object of the present finding is that of providing a cup, usingwhich, the mixing of the two drinks occurs in a gradual and automaticmanner, by simply tilting the cup in the usual manner as performed whenthe cup is taken to the lips to drink its contents.

According to the invention, this is obtained by providing for thepresence of a small compartment for accommodating the auxiliary drink inproximity to the opening; said compartment is delimited externally bythe inner surface of the cup while externally, this compartment isdelimited by a curved wall whose two side ends are connected to saidinner surface of the cup with curved sections descending towards thebottom of the cup itself. This is capable of allowing the gradual exitof the auxiliary drink from the abovementioned compartment, ending upflowing into the main drink.

These and other characteristics of the finding shall now be described indetail hereinafter, referring to one particular embodiment, provided forexemplifying and non-limiting purposes, with the help of the attacheddrawings, wherein:

FIG. 1 illustrates an overall view of the device subject of the finding;

FIG. 2 illustrates the device subject of the finding, holding the drinktherein, at the stage in which a small amount of auxiliary drink ispoured into the main drink.

Shown in the attached drawings is a cup 1 subject of the finding having,globally, a shape of the usual type; in the illustrated embodiment, inthe drawings, the cup 1 is substantially a frusto-conical-shaped withthe larger surface open, wherefrom the user sips the drink held in thecup itself.

By means of equally usual modes, such cup shall advantageoulsy beprovided with a handle 2 for allowing easy grabbing by the useremploying the fingers 3.

The main drink 7 is poured into the cup at its central part, also inthis case according to the usual modes; the main characteristic of thedevice subject of the finding is represented by the fact that present isa curved wall 4, at a portion of the inner side wall of the cup; saidwall is adapted to delimit, between itself and the corresponding sidesurface of the cup, a compartment 6 in which an auxiliary drink can beheld, made up, for example, of milk. The ends 5 of the curved wall 4 arebent towards the bottom of the cup in such a manner that, when the cupholding, for example, coffee, is tilted to sip its content (see FIG. 2),the auxiliary drink 8, made up, for example, of milk, held in thecompartment 6 descends gradually (drop by drop it might be said) intothe main compartment of the cup, obviously mixing with the main drink.In this manner the previously preset object, represented by thepossibility of having a non-immediate and non-complete mixture of thedrinks, but a very gradual pouring of the auxiliary drink into the maindrink as desired by the users, is attained.

In the meanwhile, the use of the device subject of the finding isimmediate and free of any complications whatsoever; furthermore, thefact of providing for a wall 4 inside the cup 1 does not create anyparticular construction problems when making it, thus avoidingconsiderable cost increases for the production of the cup subject of thefinding, with respect to similar cups of the known type.

Lastly, it should be taken into account that the cup subject of thefinding can also advantageoulsy be used for obtaining drinks such astea, tisanes, infusions and the like. For this purpose, it is sufficientto arrange a series of small holes on the wall 5, then add hot water orthe like into the compartment 6, while the substance to be infused(powder, small holes or the like) is provided where the main drink 7 wasinitially held, the cup is then tilted as illustrated in FIG. 2.

Obviously, the drink held in the compartment 6 is intended to pass,through small holes present in the wall 4, thus infusing the substanceheld in the main compartment of the cup, thus determining the infusionand the creation of the desired infused drink.

The present finding may also be of shapes and aspects different from theones described now, maintaining its essential characteristics, withoutfor this reason departing from the scope of the patent.

1. CUP, characterized in that present inwards, at its opening and inproximity to a portion of its interior side surface, is a curved wall(4), integral with said surface and which delimits, in connection withthe abovementioned, a compartment (6) in which an auxiliary drink (8) isadapted to be held, one said wall (4) being shaped in a manner such thatits side ends (5) are curved and directed towards the bottom of the cup,in such a manner that the auxiliary drink, held in the compartment (6)remains inside the abovementioned compartment when the cup is arrangedhorizontally, while it is intended to descend gradually into the centralcompartment of the cup, provided in which is the main drink (7), whenthe cup is slightly tilted by the user to drink the contents bypositioning one of its edges against the mouth.
 2. CUP, according toclaim 1, characterized in that it has a handle (2) integral with theexterior wall of its side surface.
 3. CUP, according to claim 1,characterized in that it has a plurality of small holes at the upperpart of the wall (4).